He suggested that if the staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School had been armed, things might have gone differently.

McDuffie and Robin agreed that they would not allow their children access to firearms if they had behavioral issues or did not appear to respect weapons.

As soon as her daughter was old enough to realize that they had a gun safe in the bedroom, Robin brought her to her father to learn gun safety.

"I knew she needed to have that same healthy fear and respect of guns, to ensure her safety," she said.

Like her mother, the teen remembers the force of firing her first weapon under the instruction of her grandfather.

She is 15 now and knows how to shoot BB guns, handguns, rifles, shotguns even an AR-15, her mother said. She feels comfortable leaving her home alone with her younger brothers knowing that she has the code to the gun safe if she needs to use it.

The teen said it's not a responsibility that she takes lightly.

"It's for our safety," she said. "I have a lot of respect for them. I don't see it as fun or cool, but if I'm ever in a situation where I need a gun, I know what to do and I'm not scared."